Nigerian president fires former aides

ABUJA, Nigeria, June 14 (UPI) -- New Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua Thursday fired all the former aides of his predecessor Olesegun Obasanjo, Nigeria's Guardian reported online.

Yar'Adua was reportedly upset that some of Obasanjo's appointees had remained in office following his May 29 inauguration.

The new Nigerian leader vowed to take on the corruption that pervaded Obasanjo's administration during eight years in office.

However, opponents and critics of the new president contend that Yar'Adua will likely follow in the footsteps of the last Nigerian president, given that they both come from the same party -- and April's presidential elections were rife with accounts of irregularities and reports of voter intimidation.